Michael Johnson to help F1 speed up pit stops

FILE - This is a Sunday, April 10, 2011 file photo of Williams Formula One driver Rubens Barrichello of Brazil drives on a shredded tire during the Malaysian Formula One Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia. Athletics great Michael Johnson will work with the Williams Formula One team to help its crew speed up drivers' pit stops. Williams F1 said Wednesday Jan. 11, 2012 that Michael Johnson Performance Inc., the training company founded by the retired 200-meter and 400-meter Olympic champion, will devise a training program for its pit crew and evaluate the whole team's regime.

LONDON — Track great Michael Johnson will work with the Williams Formula One team to help its crew speed up drivers' pit stops.

Williams F1 said Wednesday that Michael Johnson Performance Inc., the training company founded by the retired 400-meter Olympic champion, will devise a training program for its pit crew and evaluate the entire team.

Shaving a small amount from the time needed to change tires and make repairs can make a huge difference to a driver's race performance.

"I am confident that the experience and biomechanics expertise of the MJP staff that has benefited numerous American football athletes, Premier League football teams, and Olympic federations, can also benefit the Williams F1 Team pit crew in their goal to cut hundredths and even tenths of a second from their pit stop times," Johnson said.

Johnson's company has already worked with the Dallas Cowboys and FC Dallas.

Johnson won the 200 and 400 golds at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the 400 in Sydney four years later. He's been a fan of Formula One since attending the Belgian Grand Prix in 1990, when he first met team principal Frank Williams.

"When Michael and I met again recently, he explained how he had established a company that specialized in improving athletic performance," Williams said. "I was extremely keen to learn how he could help our team as there seemed to be a lot of areas of common interest.

"Michael's sporting achievements speak for themselves and the principles he used to become the fastest man in the world are certainly transferable into our own hugely competitive field."

Williams is trying to improve upon a poor recent record in the world championship.

The British team has won 113 GPs, nine constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles. But its last victory was at the 2004 Brazilian Grand Prix, and it hasn't won a drivers' or constructors' title since Jacques Villeneuve triumphed in 1997.

Co-founder Patrick Head stepped down from the board of directors last month.

Williams finished ninth of 12 teams in last season's final constructors' standings with five points, 645 behind winner Red Bull.